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Democratic candidate for governor of Texas Beto O’Rourke seems to have changed his position on AR-15 again.
O’Rourke, who tried to use the shooting at a school in Uwalde, Texas, to boost his gubernatorial campaign, has repeatedly changed his gun control stance during his various job offers.
Most recently, O’Rourke’s campaign quietly edited a section of his website on “gun safety” by changing the call to “reduce” the number of AR-15s in a statement that no civilians should own a gun.
SHOOTING AT THE TEXT SCHOOL: BETO O’RURK DERALIZES GUV. UPGRADE OF GREG ABAT ABOUT UVALDE SHOOTING
Beto O’Rourke, who is fighting Governor Greg Abbott in 2022, interrupts a press conference chaired by Abbott in Uwalde, Texas, Wednesday, May 25, 2022 (AP Photo / Dario Lopez-Mills)
The Internet Archives’ Wayback Machine shows that as early as April 1, the Weapons Safety page included a section that said, “And while it may not be easy or politically safe to say anything, I strongly believe we need to reduce of AR-15 and AK-47 on our streets. ”
Sometime after April 1 (last archived date), the campaign edited the section to say: “And while it may not be easy or politically safe to say anything, I do not believe that any civilian should own an AR-15. or AK-47. ”
O’Rourke had earlier withdrawn his aggression on gun control after falling behind current Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in opinion polls.
Beto O’Rourke and Gov. Greg Abbott fight each other in the Texas gubernatorial election in 2022 (Getty Images)
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When running for president in 2019, O’Rourke voiced support for a ban on the sale of the AR-15 and the seizure of weapons by current owners, saying: “Damn, yes, we will take your AR-15.” O’Rourke took this position in November 2021.
But in February, O’Rourke took a more moderate stance. “I am not interested in taking anything from anyone. What I want to make sure we do is defend the Second Amendment. “I want to make sure we protect our fellow citizens in Texas much better than we do now,” he told reporters.
O’Rourke’s position in 2019 was a departure from what he said in 2018 as he fought Republican Senator Ted Cruz.
“We support the Second Amendment, if you have a gun, keep that gun,” O’Rourke said in 2018. “Nobody wants to take it away from you, at least I don’t.”
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Although O’Rourke stepped up his rhetoric after the Uwalde shooting, saying no civilians “should” own an AR-15, he did not say whether he would try to ban guns in Texas if he were elected governor.
His campaign did not return an email from Fox News Digital seeking clarification on the candidate’s position.
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